Public transit ridership dropped nationwide during the COVID-19 pandemic and still hasn’t returned to prepandemic levels. This is a problem not only for transit agencies, which are losing revenue and might have to reduce services, but also for cities, which are facing higher traffic and worse air pollution. In contrast, many rail systems in European and Asian cities have been able to recover from pandemic-era declines.
France is an interesting comparison because most large and midsize French urban areas have increased public transit ridership well beyond prepandemic levels. Although their transit systems also saw declining ridership during the pandemic, they made a quick return to normal service and expanded options for dense urban neighborhoods.
Read the blog post to see what US cities could learn from France’s strategies.
In 2024, Urban’s research supported real change for prison reform, delivered actionable insights for climate recovery and resilience, closely examined the AI policy space, and provided a myriad of resources toward upward mobility for local communities. Read all the details and more in the
2024 Impact Report.
